New England Greek Style Pizza Recipe

Note: You don't have to use a cast iron pan for this - dedicated pizza pans, cake pans that you don't mind ruining, or a nonstick skillet will work just fine. You'll end up with more sauce than you need, which can be stored int he fridge for up to a week. Eat it with pasta, or more pizza! For best results, do not use pregrated cheese. It won't brown or melt properly.

Directions

1.

Combine flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl and whisk until homogenous. Add oil and water and stir with wooden spoon until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature at least 8 hours and up to 24.

2.

The next day, turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and dived in half. Form balls with each half, then place into lightly oiled bowls, coating all surfaces of the balls with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature.

3.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes and cook for thirty seconds until fragrant. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Add two thirds of crushed tomatoes and stir to combine. Reduce heat to lowest setting and cook, stirring occasionally for 1 hour. Stir in remaining tomato sauce and season to taste with salt. Remove from heat and set aside.

4.

Stretch the dough: Coat two 10-inch cast iron skillet (or cake pans/oven-safe nonstick pans) with 1 tablespoon each of shortening and olive oil. Transfer dough balls one at a time to a large cookie sheet and stretch out into a 10-inch circle. Transfer the circle to the greased skillet. Cover and allow to rise for 1 hour at room temperature. Meanwhile, adjust the oven rack to the bottom position and preheat oven to 500°F. Combine the cheeses in a large bowl and cover until ready to use.

5.

When dough has risen, top each circle with 1 cup of sauce (you will have leftover sauce), spreading it to within half an inch of the edge. Divide grated cheese evenly between the two pies, spreading it all the way to the edge of each pie.

6.

Bake pies until top is bubbly and golden brown in spots and cheese has charred around edges, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove pizzas from oven and using a thin metal spatula, release the edges from the pans. Carefully lift pies to check for doneness underneath. If you'd like a darker bottom crust, set each pie directly over a medium-low flame and cook, turning occasionally until desired level of doneness is reached.

This Recipe Appears In

J. Kenji López-Alt is the Managing Culinary Director of Serious Eats, and author of the James Beard Award-nominated column The Food Lab, where he unravels the science of home cooking. A restaurant-trained chef and former Editor at Cook's Illustrated magazine, his first book, The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science is a New York Times Best-Seller, the recipient of a James Beard Award, and was named Cookbook of the Year in 2015 by the International Association of Culinary Professionals.

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